維摩經略疏 7.75

7.75

From "Furthermore" onward is, second, clarifying the two wisdoms in terms of contemplating that the body is neither separate nor extinct. The text has two parts: 1. Clarifying real wisdom in terms of not being separate; 2. Clarifying conventional wisdom in terms of not being extinct. As for the first text, "Furthermore, contemplating the body: the body is not separate from disease": the diseased bodhisattva contemplates the true reality of the body, which is the inherently pure mind, unstained yet stained, difficult to comprehend. If it has not been completely severed, this is the body not being separate from disease. Furthermore, the dharmakāya's great compassion shares the illness of sentient beings, and the dharmakāya responds with illness; therefore it is said that the body is not separate from disease. As for "disease is not separate from the body": both the real illness and the conventional illness exist not separately from the dharmakāya. As for "this disease and this body are neither new nor old": the real illness of ignorance and the fundamental dharmakāya have no before or after, but are neither the beginning nor the foundation; sentient beings' beginningless disease is neither new nor old, and the bodhisattva's sharing in the disease is likewise neither new nor old. As for "this is called wisdom": this is real wisdom. "Even if the body has an illness, it is not permanently extinguished" is, second, clarifying conventional wisdom in terms of not being extinct. Since the diseased bodhisattva abides in correct contemplation, the four elements should not be increasingly disturbed. Caused by past karma, even if there is a severe illness, one immediately contemplates and enters the Dharma-gate; hence it is said "it is not permanently extinguished." Furthermore, "even if" indicates a provisional hypothesis: both the conventional and real illnesses are provisional hypotheses. The real illness is a provisional hypothesis of ignorance. Hence the Suvarṇaprabhāsa says: "Because it is non-existent, it is provisionally named ignorance." The conventional illness arises on account of sentient beings, so it is also a provisional hypothesis. As for "it is not permanently extinguished," it also has the real and the conventional. The real is that although this illness exists, realizing that illness is without illness, one neither severs nor destroys it; with one's own illness, one pities their illness. If one contemplates this illness and enters true reality, one obtains non-referential great compassion and still uses it to benefit beings; hence it is not permanently extinguished. The conventional is that if the illness of one group of sentient beings is extinguished, one still must manifest it for other sentient beings; hence it is not permanently extinguished.